With the September 19, 2017, release of iOS 11, Apple changed its policy around automatically requesting app reviews and ratings from end-users. This change had a direct impact on the way that review requests are made in Helpshift.

The review API from Apple lets your end-users leave app ratings in the App Store without leaving your app. However, it also caps the maximum number of such requests to three (3) per year, per user. A further limitation is that your end-users can choose to disable app review requests from the app settings on their device.

Apple has mandated usage of this API, and they’ve also discouraged the usage of custom app review request prompts. As a result of this change in Apple’s App Store policy, Helpshift deprecated the automatic review request features with our v6.2.0 iOS SDK release.

Q&A

How do I comply with the updated Apple policy?

Please speak to your developer to check if the app rating API (showAlertToRateAppWithURL:withCompletionBlock:) is still in use within your SDK. This should be removed in your next app update, as it is non-operational for iOS SDK v6.2.0+.

How can I ask my users to review my app?
If you plan to support the new Apple review API and you would still like the option to request reviews after Issue resolutions, your developer can use our CSAT-completed delegate to call the review API if an end user has given their conversation a rating of 4 or 5 stars.

Your Agents can continue to use the manual review request feature within Issues, as Apple’s policy only applies to automatic review requests:

NOTE: In your App Settings, under Mobile SDK Configurations, there is a setting for “On app update, ask for an app rating after.” As of September 2017, this setting applies only to Android. You may continue using this automated feature for your Android app users without concern.

For any questions about this deprecation, please feel free to reach out to our support team via our contact us form.